The design effort leading to the subject invention was motivated by the perceived need for solar assisted heating and cooling systems. The first part of this effort resulted in the development of a Vapor Jet Compressor Pump (VJCP), disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,228,310 (which patent is incorporated herein by reference), which had multiple functions, one of which was to serve as a heat pump motivated by solar produced vapor. In this/present application, the VJCP is motivated by the high temperature vapor produced by the collector's receiver. The heat pumping attribute of the VJCP is then used to pump heat from the collector that normally escapes to the outside environment. The temperature inside the collector resulting from heat losses from the high temperature receiver and the absorption of unfocused rays of light is thus reduced to about 50.degree. F. The consequent lowered temperature difference between the cover and the outside environment reduces the energy loss from the collector. For instance, if the outside temperature is 50.degree. F., the loss to the outside would be zero if reflection back to the outside is neglected.
The energy in the vapor supplying the VJCP, plus the pumped heat, is discharged by the VJCP into the space to be heated at temperatures needed for its economical transfer to room air. As a result of this utilization of the heat normally escaping from a collector, the efficiency of the collector approaches 100%.
In the cooling mode of operation, the VJCP pumps heat from the room to be cooled instead of the collector. Calculations indicate that a 250 ft..sup.2 collector--VJCP combination will produce about 17 ton-hr. of cooling per day in New York state during the cooling season.